Techno-Economic Optimization of Novel Stand-Alone Renewable Based Electric Vehicle Charging Station near Bahria Town Karachi, Sindh Pakistan

Abstract

Electric vehicles (EVs) are the most interesting and innovative technology in the 21st century because of their enormous advantages, both technically and economically. Their emissions rate compared to fuel- based vehicles is negligible as they do not consume fuel and hence do not emit any harmful gases. However, their bulk production, adoption and lack of charging stations increase the stress of power stations due to modern-day lifestyles. If Electric vehicles demand increases drastically then conventional power stations will not bear their demand and if they generate electricity by conventional means it will be very costly and may further add greenhouse gases. Therefore, this research provides the techno-economic assessment of a stand-alone renewable-dependent electric vehicle charging station, excluding any burden on electrical utility. The proposed study is carried out in Bahria Town, Karachi, a city in Pakistan. In this study, HOMER Pro software was utilized for techno-economic assessment. A hybrid system comprising solar Photo voltaic/Wind Turbine/Fuel cells and battery storage is included in the model. Solar and wind resources were taken from NASA’s website, where charging stations will be integrated. The overall results show promising in terms of total Net Present Cost and the Cost of Energy which are2.72M$ and0.237$, respectively. The total system generationis3,598 Megawatt hours per year, and the total energy consumption is 885 Megawatt hours per year.